


Irrational

by Rochelle_Templer



Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (1963)
Genre: Friendship, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-25
Updated: 2017-07-27
Packaged: 2018-12-06 14:39:11
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,839
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11602701
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rochelle_Templer/pseuds/Rochelle_Templer
Summary: It was one of those words that Zoe used which never meant all that much to Jamie. However, an encounter with an old enemy and a recent scare force him to consider how that word could apply to him.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This fic takes place after The Invasion and has some references to The Faceless Ones.

“Well Zoe, Jamie,” the Doctor beamed as he started to cut a fruit tart into slices. “Are you happy with the spot I chose for our picnic?”

“It is beautiful,” Zoe nodded, looking out at the field of grass and flowers in front of her. “Sometimes it’s difficult to believe that such tranquil spots exist.”

Jamie nodded in agreement. After dealing with the Cybermen yet again on Earth, the Doctor decided that he wanted a day of relaxation and suggested an afternoon picnic. The TARDIS materialized on a planet the Doctor recognized as Killinas and he immediately declared that he had found the perfect spot for their outing. The three of them worked together to make a picnic lunch from the TARDIS’ food machines and walked out to discover an empty field on a hill overlooking a small metropolis.

They spread out a blanket onto the ground and settled down to enjoy their food. As they ate, they chatted about their recent adventures, devouring everything they had packed. Now they were getting ready to enjoy their dessert.

“What do you mean?” the Doctor asked, quizzical. He plopped pieces of tart onto Zoe’s and Jamie’s plates before serving himself a particularly large piece. “There are lots of places like this. Yes, a whole galaxy of planets where the scenery is lovely and the people are friendly and delightful.”

“Aye, so why dinna we ever end up at any of those places?” Jamie asked between bites.

“The fact that we keep materializing onto hostile planets or among aggressive alien species does seem like a statistical anomaly,” Zoe replied, nodding. “That is, if the Doctor’s information is reliable.”

“What do you mean ‘if my information is reliable’, Zoe?” the Doctor said with a deepening frown.

“Statistical…?” Jamie said, carefully sounding out each syllable.

“Statistical anomaly,” Zoe repeated. “You could say that it’s a mathematical concept for something that doesn’t fit within an accepted system. For example, given how many destinations in time and space we could visit, it is very unlikely that we would keep landing in the middle of bad situations purely by accident.”

“Oh aye that,” Jamie said, sticking a thumb out toward the Doctor. “Well that’s nae to hard to figure out. Nae when ye’ve seen him try to control the TARDIS as many times as I have.”

“Jamie, sometimes I think you have no confidence in me at all,” the Doctor sighed.

“Och I have plenty of that,” Jamie replied. “I jes know that ye cannae steer any sort of vessel and there’s no point in ye trying to say otherwise.”

  The Doctor frowned even more as he glowered a little at the piper. However, he remained silent, deciding to focus on finishing his portion of tart instead.

“Doctor, are we going to visit that town in the valley?” Zoe asked.

The Doctor shoved the last bite of tart into his mouth and brushed the crumbs off his lap. Then he craned his neck toward the buildings in the distance and squinted his eyes.

“Yes, I see no reason not to,” he replied. “Killinas is a neutral planet, mainly used as a refueling and supply port for merchant class ships, so there should be numerous representatives from a variety of planets. An ideal place to do some exploring, I should think. I’m sure that there will be plenty to do, even in a modest place such as this.”

Jamie peered at the town for a few seconds before rolling his eyes. A part of him was tempted to suggest that they stick with where they were and to leave as soon as the sun began to set. The words had even reached the tip of his tongue before he finally discarded the idea. One of the Doctor’s defining traits was his curiosity. Thus, when Jamie saw the way the Doctor studied the city below and the way the little man’s eyes twinkled, he knew that there was little chance of talking him out of an impromptu expedition.

‘ _Mebbe we’ll be lucky and they’ll actually be friendly for a change,’_ he mused. Jamie glanced at the town again and shook his head.

‘ _Aye, and mebbe I’ll inherit a castle and become the chieftain of a giant, wealthy clan. That’s jes as likely to happen.’_

As soon as Zoe finished packing up the remains of their picnic, the Doctor grabbed the basket and nearly skipped back toward the TARDIS. Despite his not unfounded apprehension, Jamie continued to hold out some hope that things would go smoothly for once.

* * *

 

Three hours later, Jamie was running along the city streets, silently cursing himself for not voicing his objections to this excursion when he had the chance.

After they had returned the picnic basket to the TARDIS, Jamie, Zoe and the Doctor made the short trip to the town and met with the local Killinasians who lived there. As the Doctor had anticipated, the natives were friendly toward them as were many of the other aliens who were visiting the planet. At first it looked as if this would end up being a purely relaxing trip after all.

That is, until the crew from a newly arrived merchant ship showed up: a merchant ship that just happened to have a couple of Chameleons as members of the crew.

Jamie ground his jaw as he followed the Doctor and Zoe around another corner. At the time, most of the Chameleons had appeared to accept the ultimatum the Doctor had given them after their failed attempt at invading the Earth and stealing the identities of numerous people. The Doctor had even given them some ideas and methods for their scientists to pursue in order to help the Chameleons gain their own identities. Still, it had turned out to be a slow and painful process. Thus there were some who were bitter over the Doctor’s interference against their original plan.

Unfortunately, the Chameleons from the merchant ship’s crew were among those who held a grudge. They had recognized the Doctor and Jamie and had gone back to their ship to steal some weapons so they could carry out their revenge. After that, it didn’t take long for the Chameleons to find them again and start firing, leading to a frenzied chase through the city streets.

“Come on! This way,” the Doctor shouted over his shoulder.

Zoe and Jamie quickened their pace, trying desperately to keep up with the Doctor. As soon as the shooting started, Killinasian security guards ran after them to break up the disturbance, but the Chameleons managed to dodge them while stubbornly continuing in their pursuit.  

Another pair of shots rang out and Zoe stumbled. Jamie grabbed her before she could fall and pulled her along. They had lost sight of the Chameleons, but he could sense that they were still on their trail.

“Doctor,” he called out.

“Come on, Jamie,” the Doctor said, waving him over. “Hurry!”

The Doctor waved his hands at a fence in front of him. Once Jamie and Zoe joined him, the young Scot looked over to see that the fence acted as a barrier to a steep drop to a grassy field below.

“There’s a ladder,” the Doctor said, pointing downward. “It probably leads to the network of tunnels under the city. The Killinasians build their power stations underground and there are relay stations that feed into them scattered about within the network. ”

Jamie glanced down and saw a metal and wire ladder that swayed back and forth. The wires holding it together creaked as it moved and the rusted metal of the rungs made a sharp, crackling ping when they struck the wall.

“Ye mean, ye want us to go down that?” he said. “Ye cannae be serious.”

“Of course I am,” the Doctor said. “I’ve been to this planet before, and I can tell you that those relay stations are always manned with security guards.”

“I see,” Zoe said, her eyes lighting up. “So if we can get down there, we can take shelter at the nearest relay station until those other guards catch up to the Chameleons.”

“Yes, exactly,” the Doctor said. “Now come on, we haven’t a moment to lose. You go first; Zoe and we’ll follow you.”  

The Doctor carefully helped Zoe onto the ladder while Jamie continued to keep a lookout for the Chameleons. He could still hear the distant sounds of shouting and occasional gunfire. He had hoped that the security guards would catch up to their adversaries, sparing him the necessity of going through with the Doctor’s plan. But it didn’t take him long to realize that their pursuers were getting closer.

“Jamie, come on,” the Doctor bellowed, breaking him out of his reverie. Jamie scrambled over to the edge of the fence. By this point, the Doctor and Zoe were close to the bottom of the ladder. The Scot looked behind him one last time before taking a deep breath, carefully climbing over the fence and reaching a foot down onto the first rung of the ladder.

His foot slipped upon making contact, but Jamie managed to steady himself. He gripped the wire frame with clammy hands. He took a moment to catch his breath before he moved his hands away from the wires and onto the rung in front of him so he could begin his descent.

“Hurry up, Jamie,” Zoe yelled.

Jamie did not answer or even dare to look at her. He kept his eyes firmly locked onto the rungs, slowly and methodically making his way downward. Suddenly, a strong gust of air blew past, whipping the ladder about violently. Jamie stopped moving and closed his eyes as it smacked against stone wall. Most of the impact was absorbed by the wire frame, but the way his hands ached told Jamie that some of the skin on and around his knuckles had been peeled away by the rough surface. The ladder twisted about in the wind for another few seconds before finally hanging listlessly again.

“Jamie!” the Doctor shouted.

 Jamie’s eyes were still clamped shut, his breaths short but deep and his heart pounding harder and harder. His mind told him to move, but his body remained frozen. A memory had resurfaced, a memory that had stolen his ability to move away from him.

* * *

 

_He and the Doctor were trying to rescue Zoe and their recent acquaintance Isobel from Tobias Vaughn’s security forces and had ended up on the rooftop of a particularly tall building. A helicopter from UNIT had rolled out a rope ladder for them and it had been Jamie’s job to climb down to help the girls out the window and up to safety. At one point, he had started to slip off, but had managed to hold on and to get Zoe and Isobel onto the roof quickly if not elegantly._

_All of that had been bad enough to deal with, but then Vaughn’s guards continued to shoot at them, making it necessary for all of them to climb up the ladder again, this time into the helicopter hovering above them. The Doctor, Isobel and Zoe had been able to make it to the helicopter before the shooting became too intense. However, just as Jamie was reaching for the ladder, a stray bullet nicked the hull. The pilot decided that they had run out of time and started to veer away as soon as Jamie had gotten onto the ladder._

_Fortunately, the motion of the helicopter had not been too violent so Jamie was able to hold on and inch his way up toward the cockpit. His mind was empty of any other conscious thought. All he could perceive was the blood roaring in his ears and a painful constriction in his chest. Only the Doctor’s voice imploring him to hold on was able to break through that blank space in his brain._

_Eventually, the crew in the cockpit combined forces and pulled the ladder up toward them with the Doctor grabbing hold of Jamie’s arms and pulling him in to safety. It wasn’t until later, when Zoe related what had happened to one of the soldiers at UNIT headquarters that Jamie remembered any of this. Before that, the only thing he could vividly recall was what felt like a cold hand gripping his heart and how helpless he had felt while dangling in the air._

* * *

 

That same icy pressure and feeling of vulnerability had a hold of Jamie again. He knew that he had to climb down to the ground in order to escape the Chameleons, but his fear had paralyzed him.

“Jamie!” the Doctor called out to him. “Jamie, please you must hurry.”

“Doctor, what’s wrong?” Zoe asked. “Why isn’t he moving?”

Suddenly, Jamie felt the ladder shift again. He finally opened his eyes and looked down to see the Doctor preparing to climb back onto the ladder. He swallowed hard.

“No Doctor!” Jamie yelled at him. “Keep back. I’m coming down.”

Jamie took a shuddering breath and started to move down the ladder again. His hands trembled as he grasped the rungs, but he managed to keep a steady pace.

“There they are! Down there!”

Jamie looked back up to see the Chameleons standing above him, their guns raised.  He tried to scramble the rest of the way down the ladder. However, the two of them immediately took aim and fired simultaneously. Seconds later, Jamie felt as if a white-hot spear had burned through his right shoulder. His eyes widened as he let out a short cry. His hands no longer seemed to work and they slid off the rungs as his body fell backward.

“Jamie!”

For a second, Jamie felt as if he was floating through the air. However, that was soon replaced by the sensation of air rushing past him as he fell. He felt like he would faint, but was suddenly jarred back into full consciousness when he made contact with the ground. His head seemed to bounce off the grassy field with his injured shoulder sending ripples of pain throughout his entire body upon impact.

Jamie’s eyelids fluttered as his eyes rolled back. He thought he heard voices shouting all around him, but he couldn’t make out what they were saying. As his vision started to blur, he could see the Doctor’s face hovering over him and could tell that his lips were moving. But it was as if the words were coming from somewhere far away. Then the Scot felt a cool hand touch the side of his face.

“Jamie,” the Doctor said, his voice sounding like he was underwater. Jamie tried opening his mouth to speak, but nothing came out.

‘ _Doctor….’_

Then there was nothing. The darkness had overtaken him.

 


	2. Chapter 2

The next thing Jamie was fully aware of was the light in his eyes.

Before that, he had been lost in a fog of half-formed dreams and memories. Nothing was clear as images drifted past before he could fully make them out. He tried to focus his eyes on what he was seeing and suddenly realized that they were closed.

Jamie moaned. He struggled to move his eyelids, but they seemed to be glued shut. He tried harder, but that made his head hurt and his stomach churn. In the end though determination won out, and he managed to blink them open. However, he regretted opening them when the light stabbed at his eyes, making them water.

“Jamie?”

A soft voice registered in his ears. It took a few seconds for him to recognize it as the Doctor and by then the familiar face appeared in his line of vision.

“Doctor,” he croaked out. He tried to lift his head, but stopped when another wave of pain assaulted him.

“It’s all right, Jamie,” the Doctor assured him. “Just lie still.”

Jamie clamped his eyes shut before clumsily brushing a hand across his face.

“Light…,” he moaned. “Tae…bright….”

“Oh yes, of course.”

Seconds later, the lights dimmed. Jamie blinked his eyes again and was relieved to discover that it was much easier now to take in his surroundings. Soon, he figured out that he was lying on a bed in what looked like some kind of medical bay. He tried to sit up, but the pounding in his head was joined by a sharp pain when he started to move his right arm. He hissed and the Doctor gently placed a hand on his forehead.

“Doctor…what happened?” he gasped. “The Chameleons…where….?”

“It’s all right,” he repeated. “You’re safe now, but you need to rest. Sleep, Jamie.”

Almost immediately, Jamie’s eyes felt heavy again. His body was lulled into relaxing by the sound of the Doctor’s voice. In another moment, he fell unconscious again.

 

A short while later Jamie woke up again. This time he felt far more lucid, but that was partially due to the continued throbbing in his head and his shoulder. He glanced over to see the Doctor sitting in a chair next to the bed, flipping through the pages of his diary. Jamie groaned as he tried to shift his position, and the Doctor instantly looked up.

“Jamie,” he said as he shoved his diary back into one of his coat pockets. “Oh thank heavens. How are you feeling?”

“Och, like I’ve had a hundred horses trample all over me,” Jamie grumbled.

“That’s not surprising,” the Doctor nodded. “You’ve had a nasty blow to the head. Not to mention that wound to your shoulder and your fall. The physicians here have done a very good job in treating you, though I imagine you might be somewhat sore after all that. Still, you are very lucky that you weren’t more seriously hurt.”

“I dinna feel so lucky,” Jamie mumbled, rubbing his head. “Wait…the Chameleons…where’s Zoe? Is she…?”

“She’s fine,” the Doctor replied. “By now, she should be getting herself something to eat at one of the local restaurants.”

“But what happened, Doctor?” Jamie asked. “Last thing I remember, those Chameleons were chasing us, and…I, I was on a ladder and….”

Jamie groaned as he pushed himself to sit up. The Doctor reached over and pushed a couple buttons on a control panel that was mounted on the wall behind the bed. Soon, the head of the bed moved forward, making it so that Jamie could recline in a more upright position.

“Thank ye,” Jamie said as he resituated himself.

“You’re welcome, Jamie,” the Doctor said. “And to answer your question, we were fortunate that the Killinasian security force intervened when they did. They were able to subdue the Chameleons right after they shot at you. The chief of the authorities here has assured me that their actions will not go unpunished. Also, the captain of the ship they came from has insisted on paying for our stay here while you recover.”

“Aye? Well isn’t that as nice as pie,” Jamie frowned.

“Yes well, I can’t say that I blame you for being somewhat bitter,” the Doctor replied. “The Killinasians really should be more careful in their security screenings.”

The Doctor stood and poured some water from a carafe on a stand next to the bed into a glass. He offered it to Jamie, who gulped the liquid down greedily. Once he was done, the Doctor returned the glass to the stand and placed a hand onto Jamie’s uninjured shoulder.

“Still, things being as they are, we might as well take full advantage of the hospitality being offered to us,” he said.

“I suppose,” Jamie said, shrugging his shoulders. The action made him grimace in pain. “But then, shouldn’t ye be joining Zoe at this hotel? Aren’t ye tired tae?”

“You should know by now that I don’t need very much sleep,” the Doctor smiled warmly at him. “Besides that, you have a slight concussion. Nothing serious, but nevertheless it would be better if you weren’t left alone tonight. Just in case the situation changes.”

“Do they nae have staff to take care of things like that?” Jamie asked.

“I’m sure they do,” the Doctor answered. “But they are rather busy here, so I might as well make things a little easier for them.”

Jamie was careful to only shrug his unharmed shoulder this time and the Doctor clasped it gently before sitting down. The room was quiet for a few moments until Jamie wriggled about in his bed in an attempt to get more comfortable, wincing and letting out more than one moan as he did it.

“Jamie, is there anything I can do?” the Doctor asked. “Would you like me to lower the bed back down or…?”

“No, dinna bother,” Jamie cut in sourly. “It’s nae like I gunna be able to sleep anyway. Och, ye might as well leave me alone.”

“Jamie….”

It’s just a wee crack in the head,” Jamie continued.  “It’s nae anything I have nae been through before. There’s no point in ye staying all night.”

Jamie rolled onto his side and squeezed his eyes shut. A draft from the wall made him shiver, but he did his best to remain still and silent. A couple minutes later, he heard the sound of footsteps exiting the room. He turned his head and cracked one eye open to see that the Doctor was gone.

The young Scot frowned and let out a sigh. He didn’t relish the idea of spending the night in a hospital room by himself, but a part of him was convinced that this was what he deserved.

‘ _If those guards had nae showed up when they did, the Doctor and Zoe could have been….’_

Jamie shut his eyes again. Another draft reached his bed, chilling him even more. He tried to pull the blanket up closer to him, but was hampered by the fact that he could barely move his right arm.

 Suddenly, he felt a pair of hands gingerly adjust the blanket for him and place another one on top of it. Jamie opened his eyes back up to see the Doctor standing over him.

“I figured that you could use another blanket,” he explained. “It is a bit cool in here. Not exactly ideal conditions for restorative sleep. This should keep you warm.”

Jamie nodded and rolled back over while the Doctor continued to tuck him in. Once he was done, the Doctor sat down on the edge of the bed, his sea-blue eyes studying the piper in front of him.

“Jamie, is there something on your mind?” he asked.

Jamie frowned. He didn’t really want to answer that question, but for some reason, he found it impossible to keep quiet.

“Ye should nae have waited,” he said, averting his eyes from the Doctor’s face. “Ye and Zoe.”

“Waited? What do you mean?” the Doctor inquired. Jamie ducked his head to the side.

“Those Chameleons were out to murder the lot of us,” he continued. “And they could have tae if ye had kept waiting for me to get oof that ladder. Ye should have gone into those tunnels.”

“We couldn’t very well leave you behind,” the Doctor responded.

“But ye should have,” Jamie retorted.

“Why?” the Doctor asked. “Just because you hesitated for a couple of moments? Because you are afraid of heights?”

“I’m nae afraid,” Jamie insisted, finally meeting his gaze. “I climbed up plenty of cliffs when I was livin’ in the Highlands.”

“I do not doubt that,” the Doctor said, holding up his palms toward him. “But it’s quite another experience when you’re hanging in midair, isn’t it? In fact, I’d say that it’s probably not at all unlike when we were in the midst of escaping from Vaughn’s clutches.”

Jamie bowed his head even more, his cheeks burning. He had hoped that the Doctor had not noticed how nervous he had been over climbing up and down that rope ladder during that incident. Yet, it hadn’t really surprised Jamie that he had either. The Doctor noticed everything even if he often tried to act like he didn’t.

“I told ye, I’m nae….”

 Jamie’s voice trailed off and he let out a huff of frustration. The Doctor let his hands fall into his lap and waited patiently for Jamie to continue.

“I know it’s irrational,” Jamie added.  “Being worried aboot high places.”

“Irrational?” the Doctor said, mild surprise in his tone.

“Aye,” Jamie nodded. “Well that’s what Zoe would say, isn’t it? She told me that that’s the word for when people think or do things that dinna make sense.”

“I see,” the Doctor nodded. “And you think that it’s irrational to be scared in situations like that?”

“It must be,” Jamie said. “Like I said, I should be used to it. It’s nae like I ne’er was in high places back in Scotland. I should nae….”

Jamie stopped and shook his head slightly. It seemed like the more he tried to explain it, the worse he felt. He was tempted to ask the Doctor to leave him alone again, but the Doctor placed his hand back on his shoulder before he could say a word.

“Jamie,” the Doctor said. “There is nothing unusual about how you reacted. You may have had a lot of experience with heights in the past, but that doesn’t make you immune to any sort of anxiety when confronted with them while your life is in peril. It is certainly not any reflection on your courage.”

“But dinna ye see?” Jamie responded. “Ye and Zoe…the Chameleons might have got ye and it would have been my fault.  Ye cannae afford to be afraid in battle. That’s when people make mistakes that get them and others killed.”

“Well there is a lot of truth to what you’re saying, I grant you,” the Doctor nodded. “But I don’t think it’s as simple as that.”

“Simple, eh?” Jamie scowled. “I guess that figures tae, doesn’t it? Coming from me.”

“No, not like that, Jamie,” the Doctor replied with a frown of his own. “And I will not have you turning my words into a dismissal of your intelligence. I know that you know better than that.”

The Doctor let out a sigh, a wan smile appearing on his face as he patted Jamie’s arm.

“When I said that it’s not so simple, it’s because emotions themselves tend to be complex,” he explained. “You see, it’s not just the feelings you have, it’s how you react to these feelings and how much power you give them over your decisions. Now, while I have never doubted your bravery, I’m fairly certain you’ve been afraid more than once during our travels. And yet, that has never stopped you from doing what needed to be done whenever you or I or anyone we’re encountered was in danger. That is the true measure of valor, Jamie. Not whether or not you’re afraid, but how you choose to respond to that fear.”

“Mebbe,” Jamie conceded. “I can see what ye’re sayin’, but I cannae….”

“No,” the Doctor interrupted, pointing a finger at the young Scot’s nose. “I am not saying that fear won’t ever get the better of you. But the chance that you might make a mistake is far less important than your capacity for feelings like these.”

“Eh? So now, ye’re sayin’ ye want me to be afraid?”

“I’m saying that I much prefer that to the alternative,” the Doctor said. “Do you think that I would rather have companions who are never scared? If anything that is far worse. The last thing I would ever want is to travel with people who know nothing of emotions like fear and who place no value on their lives. Especially since such people could never understand my own fears.”

“Yer fears?” Jamie said, incredulous. “Ye only act scared when ye’re playing some kind of trick. At the most, ye jes seem a wee bit worried at times. I wonder if people like…well, like yerself are ever really scared.”

“I may not be human, but that does not mean that I know nothing about terror,” the Doctor said. “I can assure you that I have experienced it just as keenly as you or anyone else.” He put his hand onto Jamie’s forearm and squeezed it gently. “For example, how do you think I felt when I saw you fall from that ladder?”  

Jamie blinked in surprise and bowed his head again. He could tell that this was one of those times where the Doctor asked a question and did not expect an answer. At least not one that would be said aloud. Consequently, it didn’t take the piper long to realize what the Doctor was trying to tell him.

“Sorry Doctor,” he mumbled. “I dinna mean to act as if ye….”

“It’s all right, Jamie,” the Doctor murmured, squeezing his arm again. “I know you didn’t mean anything by it. And let me finish all this by saying that you weren’t wrong when you said that your fear was irrational. But that’s largely because all emotions tend to be irrational to some extent. Nevertheless, their being irrational does not make them wrong or invalid. Just like our thoughts and our actions, emotions are a major part of what defines us. And I, for one, would not like to imagine an existence without them.”  

“I dinna think I would either,” Jamie nodded. “Life would be pretty boring, wouldn’t it?”

“That it would, Jamie,” the Doctor smiled at him. “That it would.”

Jamie finally let out a chuckle and grinned back. The Doctor moved off the bed.

“Now then, I think you should get some more sleep,” he said. “You’re going to need it while you’re recovering.”

“Can I have some more water first?” Jamie yawned.

“Of course,” the Doctor said. “Hmmm, the carafe is empty. I’ll have to get you some more. I shan’t be long.”

Jamie nodded again as the Doctor picked up the pitcher and shuffled out of the room. A few seconds later, Zoe burst in with a grin on her face and relief shining in her eyes.

“Jamie, you’re awake,” she said as she walked over to the bed. “Oh, I’m glad that you are getting better.” 

She leaned over to gingerly hug him from the side, and Jamie responded by putting his arm around her and patting her back.    

“Och, ye should know that it takes more than a lil’ scrape like that to keep a McCrimmon down,” he said with a grin.

“That was hardly a little scrape,” Zoe said as she sat down in the chair the Doctor had occupied. “Concussions can be very serious. And those weapons that the Chameleons were carrying can deliver fatal injuries if any major organs make contact with their disrupter beams.”

“Mebbe, but there was nae much danger of that,” Jamie assured her. “They were nae exactly the best of shots.”

“You are right about that,” Zoe said. “I hate to think about what might have happened to both you and the Doctor if they had been more accurate.”

“What do ye mean, ‘me and the Doctor’?” Jamie asked.

“Well after you fell, the Chameleons shot at you again,” Zoe explained. “Fortunately, they missed, but then the Doctor stood up and started to throw pebbles at them while running back toward the wall. The Killinasian guards arrived less than a minute after that and it was a good thing that they did. The Doctor might not have been as lucky as you were.”  

Jamie nodded and hoped that Zoe didn’t notice the way that his hands gripped at his blankets. Even though it was all over now, he hated the idea that the Doctor had put himself into so much danger for his sake.

“I assumed that the Doctor did that to try to divert their attention onto him and away from you,” Zoe continued. “Still, I was surprised that he chose such a risky tactic.”

“Ye mean it was…irrational?” Jamie replied. Zoe tilted her head slightly.

“Yes, I suppose you could say that,” she said. “Which doesn’t make sense really. Normally, the Doctor is much more sensible and analytical than that.”

“Aye,” Jamie said. “Hey, ye aren’t thinking of doing something like that tae, are ye?”

“No, of course not,” Zoe said with a slight frown. “Besides, it would be far more advantageous if at least one of us made sure to remain consistently logical.”

“Aye, well I dinna ken if that is likely while traveling with the Doctor,” Jamie smirked.

“I heard that, Jamie,” the Doctor said as he walked into the room. “Zoe, it was very nice of you to stop by to visit, but I think it’s time that we let Jamie get some rest.”

“All right, Doctor,” Zoe said. “Good night, Jamie.”

Zoe got up and left while the Doctor poured Jamie another glass of water and gave it to the piper. Jamie drained it dry within seconds and laid back down when he was finished.

“Doctor.”

“Yes, what is it, Jamie?”

Jamie fiddled with the cup in his hands for a moment more before handing it over to the Doctor. As he did he took a deep breath and met the Doctor’s gaze.

“Ye know what ye said about how it was nae always wrong to be irrational?” he said, his expression somber. “I was jes thinkin’ aboot it and I thought that mebbe it’s nae such a good thing after all. Mebbe we should try to nae be that way so much.”

“You’ve been talking to Zoe,” the Doctor said. His eyes closed slightly, but his gaze somehow became even more piercing. “It’s not a bad idea, to be certain, but I hardly think it’ll be practical or even possible.”

The Doctor sat back down in his chair and clasped Jamie’s shoulder again.

“To be honest, I think there will always be a part of us that’s a little irrational,” the Doctor said with another smile. “Don’t you?”

Jamie leaned back against his pillow and responded with another grin. He still wasn’t happy about the idea of the Doctor taking so many risks for him. However, in that moment, Jamie realized that he couldn’t begrudge him for that; not when he knew that he would always do the exact same thing for the Doctor.

“Aye, ye’re prolly right,” the piper laughed softly. “Cannae blame me for tryin’ though.”

“Oh no, of course not,” the Doctor said. “Now, try to get some rest. You really do need it.”

Jamie nodded and closed his eyes. The Doctor worked the controls to move the head of the bed back down before adjusting the blankets again, patting Jamie’s arm one last time before retrieving his diary from his pocket. As he drifted off to sleep, Jamie thought again about what had happened and about all of the things the Doctor had said to him.

Maybe both he and the Doctor were pretty irrational at times. But then again, Jamie also knew he wouldn’t have it any other way.

 

 

 


End file.
